Wind power tariff may nose down to Rs 4-4.5 per unit in the latest 1,000 Mw auction

NEW DELHI: Wind tariff is likely to come in between Rs 4 and Rs 4.5 per unit -- below the average of around Rs 5 -- in the auction being conducted by SECI to set up 1,000 MW capacities for supply of power to non-windy states.

The state-run Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) is likely to complete the bidding of the wind projects by the month end.

"The average tariff of wind power is around Rs 5 per unit. SECI has not provided any benchmark tariff in the auction. But it is likely to range between Rs 4-4.5 per unit, which would be below the average of Rs 5 per unit at present," a source said.

On response to the auction, the source said, "The companies generally submit bids on the last date. We are expecting good response. The last date for submitting financial bids is January 9, 2017. After that, it will take about three weeks to complete the procedure."

Later last year, SECI had floated tenders for total wind power capacity of 1,000 MW. The competitive bidding is tariff based and will be awarded to those quoting the lowest price (power tariff).

SECI will tie up long-term power purchase agreements of developers with non-windy states to whom power will be supplied through the central transmission utility.

Under the scheme, the government will not acquire land or equipment as developers will have to do that on their own. They would also run and maintain their plants.

According to the scheme, the project capacity will be determined by SECI for each tender, but will not be less than 25 MW for a single project developer at one site.

SECI is the nodal agency for implementation of this scheme and is working on the e-bidding process followed by e-reverse auction for eligible bidders.

It will also develop a suitable mechanism for project monitoring.

It has been stipulated that no separate funding shall be provided by the ministry to SECI to implement this scheme. The objective is to facilitate supply of wind power to non-windy states at a price discovered through transparent bidding.

The wind power deployment in the country started in early 1990s. The current wind power installed capacity is nearly 28.08 GW, accounting for around 9 per cent of the total installed capacity of 310 GW.

Globally, India is at 4th position, after China, the US and Germany, in terms of wind capacity installation. The Centre has set an ambitious target of 175 GW power from renewable energy resources by 2022 and out of this, 60 GW has to come from wind power.